Can new additions provide shooting Detroit Pistons need in 2019-20?

Storyline 2: Addressing their shooting conundrum

In this faced-paced, modern-style of play, if the Pistons don’t address their pressing shooting issues, improving upon their 41 wins of last season is going to prove extremely difficult.

Of the teams that finished in the bottom-10 in the league for points per game, just two, the Indiana Pacers and the Orlando Magic made the postseason, with the Pistons ranking 25th overall.

Accompanying this with a 29th finish for field goal percentage and 23rd for 3-point percentage, it’s clear the Pistons needed major upgrades in this department.

While a low-key addition, Tony Snell should prove to be a smart addition. Although on a small volume, Snell shot at a 39.7 percent clip last season from long range and holds a career 38.2 percent shooting return from beyond the arc.

When you compare this to a player dealt away mid last season, Stanley Johnson, this is a notable upgrade at the small forward spot. Having shot at a 29.2 percent from three in 262 career games as a Piston, swapping Johnson for Snell moving forward is certainly a positive.

In addition to Johnson, a pair of other low-percentage 3-point shooters, Ish Smith and Glenn Robinson III, departed via free agency, with this duo hitting at a 31.5 percent clip between them last season.

Proficiency from long range was something head coach Dwane Casey made a point of mentioning recently as it pertains to the Pistons’ strategy in 2019-20:

"“Our identity has to be a 3-point shooting team. We have to be with the new NBA, the style of play we want to establish. I felt like we established that style last year and we were shooting analytical shots, but we weren’t making them, but all the statistics will show we were taking the right shots, now we got to make those shots.”"

This is certainly easier said than done. The arriving trio of Derrick Rose, Markieff Morris and Tim Frazier are certainly not snipers from long-range, while Joe Johnson, more than capable perimeter shooter, was not in the league last season.

This is going to be mean incumbent shooting guard Luke Kennard ramps up his volume, after his 4.3 attempts per game last season resulted in a team-best 39.4 percent return. Another who could leap is second-year guard Svi Mykhailiuk. Acquired midseason via trade, Mykhailiuk will be given time to develop, but certainly has the skills, as evidenced by his 44.4 percent shooting clip from long distance as a senior at Kansas.

In all, while Casey is right about his intentions with the 3-ball, converting this into success is another matter altogether.